Page 27 of When the Moon Met the Sun

A troubled smile crossed his face before he said, “It isn’t your fault, Your Majesty. You were just a girl at the time—you couldn’t have done a thing even if you were aware of what your father had been doing. But if it hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have been taken in by the South. King Robyn—he had only been Prince Robyn at this point—gave me a place here, at The Haven, in this very library. I serve him now through working in the library as a head servant, and he gives me housing and a place to call home. Many of the servants that stay here have some type of troubling past—it’s whysome refuse to speak. For me, the quiet of the library helps quiet my mind and its voices. It’s given me a sense of purpose and helped me to heal.”

I offered him a small, sad smile in response to his own, before a thought crossed my mind.

“Laurence, I’m honored you’ve told me all of this but… why now? Why are you telling me all of this?” I asked in a quiet voice, though I feared I already knew the answer.

“Queen Aviva, you forget—I’ve been where you are. I was raised with all of the same stories and propaganda that you were. But all the cruel stories you heard about the South? The Southerners didn’t do any of those things, theNorthdid. The Northerners only switch up the narrative to keep their people in line and terrified. It’s all manipulation, a scare tactic. The South… they’re good people, Your Majesty. I know you’ve only been here a short time, and you have no reason to trust them. But if you can’t trust them, trustme,Northerner to Northerner, when I tell you—you’re on the wrong side of things if you’re still envisioning the South as your enemy.” He spoke in his usual kind voice, but his words struck like a blow to the chest.

I let out a deep breath slowly before speaking. “So, let me get this straight. You’re pretty much saying everything I’ve ever known… it was all a lie. I hadn’t even known my father was capable of such horrific acts. And while I’ve been fighting Robyn tooth and nail thinking he’s the evil one here, in reality, it was my own father?”

Laurence met my eyes as he said with a steady voice, “That’s exactly what I’m saying, Your Majesty.”

I sucked in a sharp breath, even though I had expected that response from him.

“I’m inclined to believe you, considering how pretty much everything I’ve seen of the Southerners so far has been genuine and of pure intent,” I said, then took a moment toponder.

“Laurence, since you were raised in the North, can I ask you something?” I asked him.

“Anything, my queen,” he said without hesitation.

“My mother… was she Northern? All the portraits I’d seen of her back home were in black and white, and my memory of her is foggy, to say the least,” I admitted. “Though I don’t remember her having any wings.”

Laurence’s eyes widened slightly, letting me know this wasn’t the question he had been expecting, though he answered anyways.

“There were rumors your mother was of Southern origins, though I have no idea if that was true or not. Your father kept her out of the public’s eye as much as he could, and she was only around a handful of years before she disappeared as mysteriously as she arrived. I don’t know where she and your father met. All I know is one day we suddenly had a new queen, and a few years later, we didn’t. Your father made a public statement, claiming she had passed, but not everybody believed him. I do remember, though, that everybody who had the honor to meet her, adored her and spoke of how kind-natured she was. You take after her in that sense, I believe.” He spoke in a tone that felt very affirming, though I didn’t realize how much I needed to hear about her.

I nodded, taking in this information, while being slightly disappointed at not getting a straight answer.

Another shot of guilt rang through me as I realized I very well might be one of the only people alive who knew the truth about what happened to my mother.

And, accident or not, it was all my fault.

After a moment, I looked back up at the male before me and met his eyes.

“Can I trust you?” I asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

Laurence nodded firmly once and said, “Always, Your Majesty.”

“I need to find out more about my mother. I know her maiden name, and if she was from the South, I was hoping you couldhelp me find her genealogical records to confirm. Think you’re up for it?” I questioned, trying to lighten the heavy mood that hung around us like a storm cloud my father had conjured.

His spine straightened and his face lit up at being given a task. “I knew you had to have been searching for something specific this past week, but it wasn’t my place to question you. I vow to help in any way I can,” he promised.

“Thank you, Laurence,” I said, the corners of my mouth tugging up into a small smile.

He nodded, returning my smile with one of his own.

In a way, he reminded me of the father I’d always wished I’d had.

“Her name was Elore Ashford,” I said, standing up as I spoke, ready to search through the shelves and shelves of books. It wasn’t until I looked back at Laurence that I saw just how his face had blanched.

“Did you say Ashford, Your Majesty?” he asked slowly.

My eyes narrowed as I turned back to him and said, “Yes, I did.”

Carefully, he spoke with the softness of a griffin feather, as if he was trying not to frighten me as he said, “That’s the name of one of the highest ranking noble families in the entire South.”

Chapter Eleven

“Pardon?” I stammered. “You’re confident?” I pressed Laurence further, who was still sitting on the couch before me as I placed both of my hands on the table to steady myself.

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